Williams and Elliott will not be ignored in the final days of the campaign | News, sports, jobs

Photo by Steven Allen Adams Huntington Mayor Steve Williams, left, and former Wheeling Mayor Glenn Elliott, Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate, talk before Tuesday night’s candidate forum in Charleston.

CHARLESTON – With just over a week left until the general election ends on Tuesday, November 5, two Democratic candidates have no intention of being ignored and want to lift up those who also feel ignored by those in Charleston and Capitol Hill.

Speaking last Tuesday before a group of people representing the black community, the poor, women and other marginalized groups, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Steve Williams and Democratic US Senate candidate Glenn Elliott understood that there is an uphill battle that rid.

Williams, a three-term mayor of Huntington, and Elliott, a former two-term mayor of Wheeling, spoke Tuesday night, the day before early voting began, at a Meet the Candidates event hosted by the West Virginia NAACP at the First Baptist Church on Shrewsbury Street near downtown Charleston.

A decade ago, Williams’ resume would have made him a top-tier candidate for a major political party. He is a native of West Virginia; graduate of West Virginia University and Marshall University, where he played on the famous Young Thundering Herd football team; a successful businessman; and former member of the House of Delegates.

Williams took over as mayor of Huntington in 2013, reversing a major city budget deficit. A city once ravaged by the opioid crisis with 28 heroin overdoses recorded in a four-hour period on one day, Williams created teams to quickly respond to overdose issues, worked to implement treatment options and then joined to Cabell County to file an ongoing lawsuit against major opioid manufacturers and distributors.

Since then, during his tenure as mayor, the city has received a $3 million award for being selected as one of the best communities in the United States. The city budget now ends in modest surpluses, bond ratings have improved, and essential services are funded. Huntington is now leveraging its money to obtain additional grants for city improvements. And although the substance use disorder crisis continues in the state, the city has a good handle on the issue.

“I’m running for governor because I know if I can do it in Huntington, we can do it in West Virginia,” Williams told the crowd Tuesday. “My mission is not to become governor of the state of West Virginia. My mission is to see this state transformed. If becoming governor allows me – along with you – to do just that, then God will look down on us and give us the opportunity to do wonderful things.”

But despite Williams’ resume and optimism, he remains behind in financial support for Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, the Republican gubernatorial candidate. Morrisey has led Williams 10 to 1. In the most recent WV MetroNews West Virginia poll released in late August, 49% of respondents said they would vote for Morrisey, while 35% said they would vote for Williams, with a 5%. preferring another candidate and 11% unsure.

In that same poll, Williams had the lowest name recognition of several political leaders listed, with a 25% favorable rating, an 18% unfavorable rating, and a 57% not sure rating. In May, rumors were swirling that Williams, who was unopposed in the primary, was being pressured to retire in favor of U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin throwing his hat in the ring. But Manchin ultimately denied such a move shortly before switching from Democrat to independent.

Williams is aware that he is not the favorite in the gubernatorial race, but he won’t let Morrisey win without a fight. Williams’ first television ad aired Wednesday. And on Tuesday, October 29, Williams will go head-to-head with Morrisey in a debate at Fairmont State University moderated by WV MetroNews Talkline host Hoppy Kercheval.

“The reality… is that this state needs leadership; leadership that will ensure there are opportunities for everyone in the state of West Virginia, not just the people who are supported by the moneychangers,” Williams said. “It doesn’t matter what color you are, what sex you are, who you love, what you do, the bottom line is ensuring that everyone has the opportunity to be able to serve each other.”

Morrisey may be treating Williams as a serious opponent, but Glenn Elliott isn’t getting the same level of respect from Gov. Jim Justice, the Republican U.S. Senate candidate to succeed Manchin next year. Justice is not only refusing to debate his Democratic opponent, but is now also leaving the state to campaign in Pennsylvania and North Carolina for former Republican President Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential race with Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris.

“I’m Glenn Elliott, running for the United States Senate and running against Jim Justice who, of course, like many candidate events, is not here tonight,” Elliott said. “I would challenge you to find a Senate candidate who has worked harder than me over the last year.”

Elliott, who was limited to two four-year terms as mayor of Wheeling, spoke to the crowd about efforts during his tenure to strengthen the city’s Human Rights Commission, becoming the first state government to recognize Juneteenth, approving the Crown Law prohibiting discrimination based on hairstyles and adopt a resolution recognizing racism as a public health crisis. Elliott said he achieved these goals in a bipartisan manner.

“I said these things because Wheeling is a very culturally conservative city, much more culturally conservative than maybe here in Charleston,” Elliott said. “We were able to get things done with a 7-0 vote on the city council, including three or four members of my city council who are very far to the right politically, but we talked among ourselves. “We listen to people and actually meet them where they are and find a way to come together for these consensus issues to move our city forward.”

Other groups participating in Tuesday’s forum included members of several black fraternities and sororities, the Tuesday Morning Group, West Virginia Can’t Wait, West Virginia Citizens Action Group, West Virginia Citizens for Clean Elections, Rise Up West Virginia, ACLU, Moms. Demand Action, Black Voter Impact Initiative and The Links, Incorporated.

“We’ve really come together because this is a serious matter,” said Karen Williams, a retired educator and community organizer who served as mistress of ceremonies at Tuesday’s event. “What I discovered over the years is that we must collaborate because one group may have 30 members and another group may have 50 members, but when we come together, we are power. We have to do something and we are going to vote.”

“We’ve said this is the most important election of our lifetime, and it is,” said Barbara Cary, a retired staff member at West Virginia State University, one of two historically black colleges and universities in West Virginia. “We not only voted for ourselves; “We will vote for generations to come.”

All candidates for the US Senate, US House of Representatives, governor, state constitutional offices, legislative candidates and candidates for county offices were invited to Tuesday’s event. But other than a replacement for Republican Agriculture Commissioner Kent Leonhardt and a Republican candidate for the Kanawha County Commission, no other Republican candidates attended.

Tuesday’s forum was not just about giving the candidates a chance to speak, but also an opportunity for people to raise issues for the candidates to consider. Williams was asked about issues of protecting women’s reproductive rights, the state’s dismal health statistics and the appointment of members of marginalized groups to judgeships in open circuit courts.

Ultimately, Williams told the crowd Tuesday night that nothing can change the issues they care about unless they can motivate people to vote, make their voices heard at the polls and educate those who will be in power after the November 5 elections. I won’t forget them.

“It’s been said here a couple of times tonight that someone needs to do something,” Williams said. “Well, then what each of us has to do is look in the mirror and identify what our responsibility is going to be? What is the task each of us has been given to do this?

“Ladies and gentlemen, that’s the way we approach things in Huntington, and we change things,” Williams continued. “That is exactly what we will do here in West Virginia to ensure that we create prosperity within our state… We seek to create prosperity in our state and we will set standards that the rest of the nation will seek to follow. “West Virginians will lead the way.”

(Adams can be reached at [email protected])